High adipose LPL activity and adipocyte hypertrophy reduce visceral fat and metabolic risk in obese, older women

Abstract

Objective To determine whether higher subcutaneous adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity (AT-LPLA) is associated with greater triglyceride (TG) storage in subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), thereby reducing visceral adipose tissue (VAT) accumulation and metabolic dysfunction. Methods Obese postmenopausal women (60 ± 1 years, mean ± SEM; N = 101) had body composition measured by DXA and CT and had fat aspirations to measure fat cell weight (FCW) and AT-LPLA. Women were ranked by visceral to total abdominal fat ratio (VAT/TAF), and the lowest and highest groups (n = 24) matched for % fat and age. Results The prevalence of metabolic dysfunction was 7-to 10-fold higher in women with high VAT/TAF (Ps < 0.01). Women with low VAT/TAF had 11% and 6% lower abdominal and gluteal FCW but 28% and 54% higher AT-LPLA/106 cells in abdominal and gluteal fat, respectively. Abdominal FCW correlated with AT-LPLA in women with low (r = 0.63, P < 0.01) but not high (r = 0.14, P = 0.52) VAT/TAF, and these lines differed in slope (P < 0.05) and intercept (P < 0.01), suggesting greater capacity for TG storage with low VAT/TAF. There were no relationships between gluteal FCW and AT-LPLA. The relationship between SAT and abdominal AT-LPLA (r = 0.39, P < 0.01) suggests that higher AT-LPLA promotes TG storage. Conclusions These results suggest that higher AT-LPLA is associated with SAT adipocyte hypertrophy, which reduces visceral adiposity and metabolic risk in obese, older women.